


Legacy of Steele - Part 4: Old Friends, Old Foes

by NorahBolt56



Series: Steele Stringed Hearts & Legacy of Steele [8]
Category: Remington Steele (TV)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-22
Updated: 2019-05-30
Packaged: 2020-01-23 21:49:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,473
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18558553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NorahBolt56/pseuds/NorahBolt56
Summary: In this part of the series, an old foe comes back to haunt not only Remington and Laura, but their loved ones as well. In order to combat this threat they'll need all the help they can get, which leads to them calling on some old friends..(Please note this is a work in progress - I will add more chapters as I finish them)





	1. Chapter 1

Remington Steele sat on the couch in the living room of the comfortable house he shared with his wife Laura and their two children in Malibu and smiled to himself. If he could have seen himself now, ten or more years ago he would scarcely have believed the changes to his life – instead of a con-artist & thief who could never be tied down to one place or one woman for that matter, he was now, at forty,  a well  respected private detective, as well as a devoted husband and father of three.  Oh how his life had changed the day he had walked into the detective agency that bore the name he would soon thereafter adopt as his own, ten years ago. And all because of one woman – Laura Holt (now Steele), his partner in life & in work.

As he reminisced over their life together his smile got broader – all they had been though & shared, the sometimes rocky start to their relationship before they finally admitted their true feelings to each other and committed themselves to a life together. And then he thought about  the wonderful years they had shared since then with their marriage and welcoming two children into their world. Just then Laura walked into the room carrying their 3 year old son Mickey, with their 5 year old daughter Olivia not far behind. Laura stopped at the look on his face. “Why the smile Rem?’ she asked with one of her own. His blue eyes twinkled as he looked at her & their children – Mickey with his shock of thick black hair like his own but with his mother’s deep brown eyes, and Olivia, who had inherited his piercing blue eyes and her mother’s chestnut brown hair. They were the perfect combination of their parents.

“Why wouldn’t I smile my love?” he replied. “I feel like the luckiest man alive – life is good,” as he got up and kissed her and their children. Laura smiled back at him. “I feel the same way,” she confessed. 

“Story time Daddy,” Mickey said as he held out his arms to his father who took him.“Yes story time daddy,” Olivia chimed in as she tugged at his leg.

“Well Michael Richard Steele and Olivia Danielle Steele – what story shall we have tonight then eh?” he asked with a grin and Laura’s heart swelled with love for him. He was such a good father – not only to Mickey & Olivia but also to Harry, his now 21 year old first born son, who he had fathered when he was a teenager, with his first love Kate O’Casey. They had learnt of Harry’s existence 8 years ago and since then he had become an integral part of their lives and he was a wonderful big brother to his younger half siblings. Laura knew as she watched Remington with their children that he would never leave them as her own father had left her & her sister & mother. As she thought back to the old fears she’d  originally had of Remington leaving her, she shook her head at how foolish and unfounded those fears had been.

“How about we go and get your PJs on and then Daddy can read you that bedtime story?” she said with a laugh as Remington put Mickey down and gave both him & Olivia a kiss before they ran upstairs with Laura. It was a stormy night out and he wondered how much luck they would have getting them both to sleep.

While Laura got the children into their pajamas, her thoughts also turned to the years she and her husband had spent together and how happy she was. As she looked at their children, so much like them in so many ways, a smile crossed her face. “C’mere you little rascal,” she said to Mickey with a laugh as he tried to scoot out of her arms. He was a bundle of energy like his father, never stopping from the moment he woke up till the moment he fell asleep. Though not a dead ringer for his father like his older brother Harry was, due to the deep brown eyes he had inherited from her, he was his father’s son in practically every other way. He had inherited his father’s lopsided grin and cheeky charm, something which seemed to run in the males in the family, from his paternal grandfather, Daniel, to his father and older half-brother. And even at the tender age of three, Mickey seemed to instinctively know how to use his charm to get his own way.

Laura had to admit she often couldn’t resist him, he was definitely a ‘mummy’s boy’, reminding her so much of his father as he did, she couldn’t help herself. His grandmother Abigail, Aunt Frances & cousins Mindy & Laurie Beth and of course Aunty Mildred, were also not immune to his charm and spoilt him rotten. “He’s just so darn cute I can’t say no!” Frances would exclaim as she gave him another piece of chocolate (and for Frances being the chocoholic she was like Laura, that was no small thing!) or whatever else he asked for. The only female in his family seemingly immune to his boyish charm was his sister Olivia, who didn’t let him get away with much. The healthy dose of sibling rivalry between them not only reminded Laura of herself and her sister as children, but their squabbles often also reminded her of herself & Remington, especially when they talked over the top of one another.

Like her mother, Olivia had a stubborn streak and a little temper to match and she would often protest in righteous indignation if she thought her little brother was getting something she wasn’t. Of course she had her father wrapped round her little finger as she’d had done since the day she was born – to him his ‘princess’ as he called her could do no wrong. Laura could tell they were going to have their hands full when the two of them became teenagers,  but she wouldn’t have them any other way – they were after all their parents’ children!

 

A little while after Laura and the children went upstairs the doorbell rang. “I’ll get it ,” Remington called to Laura as he opened the door to find his oldest son Harry standing there, soaked through from the rain. “Harry?! What a surprise – a great surprise though!” Remington greeted him with a happy smile. “Come on in out of the rain son – you’re soaked.”

“Thanks Dad,” Harry replied in his English accent, so similar to his father’s  as he stepped inside. “Come here and give your old man a hug,” Remington stated with a laugh as he looked at his son with pride – now a young man who was the spitting image of him in his younger days – same blue eyes, same jet black hair.

“Dad I’m soaked and you’ll get soaked too,” Harry protested.  “I don’t care,” his father laughed as he gave him a big hug. They hadn’t seen Harry for a few months as he was busy studying law at Harvard University in Boston on a 2 year exchange program from Cambridge University in England. He divided his time between the U.S. where his father lived and England where his mother Kate lived with her husband Rick and their 3 year old twins, Cruz & Gabriella, as he had done since learning Remington was his father when he was 13.

Remington was immensely proud of him and how well he had done with his studies and was so happy that his son was getting the formal education he never had the chance to. He did think it was quite ironic that his son was studying law though, when he had spent a good deal of his life on the wrong side of it. But that was all behind him now – had been for going on ten years.

“Why didn’t you let us know you were coming? We could have picked you up from the airport and saved you getting soaked. Laura and the kids will be so excited you’re here,” Remington went on and then he stopped and looked at his son’s face. Instead of his usual grin, so like his own, that he normally had, Harry’s expression was deadly serious and he had a look in his eyes that his father had rarely seen there – fear.

“Junior – is something wrong?’ he asked perceptively as his son nodded.

“I think I’m in trouble Dad,” he confessed as Remington looked concerned.

“What sort of trouble son?” Remington asked, thinking it must be something pretty serious for Harry to turn up on their doorstep after flying across the country, rather than just calling them on the phone.  “I found this on my desk in my dorm room this morning,” Harry stated seriously as he took a piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to his father. Remington unfolded it – it was a typed note with a single line:

                                                                                 “You will pay for the sins of your father.”

Fear knotted Remington’s stomach as father & son exchanged a worried glance. “You’ve got no idea who left this?” Remington asked as Harry shook his head. “Steve my roommate’s away at the moment – no-one else besides me has a key to the room and it didn’t look like anyone had broken in,” Harry informed him.

Just then Laura and the kids who were now in their pajamas came back into the room. ”Harry!” she exclaimed with pleasant surprise as she hugged her stepson.

“Harry!” his younger brother and sister echoed excitedly as they ran up to the big brother they adored.  “Hi Laura,” Harry gave her a peck on the cheek. “Hi Livvy, hi Mickey,” he greeted his siblings fondly as he crouched down to hug them both.

“What a lovely surprise – what are you doing here? I thought semester break wasn’t for another few weeks? Oh you should have called us to come pick you up from the airport – you’re soaked,” Laura stated with a warm smile.

Harry & Remington exchanged a look of concern then Remington said quietly to his wife ,”Ah let’s talk in the kitchen shall we while we let the kids catch up.” Laura followed him into the kitchen. sensing there was something wrong. “What’s up? Is Harry okay?” she asked worriedly. “Someone left this in his dorm room this morning,” Remington stated seriously, his face grim, as he handed her the note and ran a worried hand over his face. Laura read it with an increasing sense of dread. “Who do you think could have left it? I mean there’s not that many people who know Harry is your son, other than our family & friends,” she stated, given that he went by his birth name of Harry O’Casey. Harry also didn’t really like to publicise the fact that both his parents were famous – his father a well known private detective, his mother a rock star – preferring to make his own way in the world without cashing in on their fame.  Although sometimes it was inevitable that people would find out who his parents were, but both Remington & Kate tried to keep that to a minimum. If you looked at Remington & Harry standing side by side though, you could definitely tell that they were father & son.

“Harry said only he and his roommate who’s away at the moment have a key to the room, and it didn’t look like the room had been broken into,” Remington replied. “So who then?” Laura asked with concern, both of them thinking back over the number of criminals they had helped catch over the years, any one of them who may have had a vendetta against Remington Steele. Or even someone from his past life before he became Remington Steele perhaps? No-one immediately came to mind though – most of the crooks they had helped put away were still in jail or had passed on as far as they knew. Even Major Descoine, their biggest nemesis to date, had passed away in jail a year ago they had heard. But someone who bore him, or the agency, a grudge had found out Harry was his son.

Remington’s fear started to give way to anger – it was one thing to threaten him, but to threaten his son,  that was an entirely different matter that was very, very personal. “When I get my hands on whoever’s behind this,” he muttered angrily under his breath, his hands clenching into fists. “I know, I know – I feel the same,” Laura reassured him but she also tried to calm him down. “Icy calm Rem – we’ve got to stay calm for Harry’s sake. The poor kid must be terrified. We’ve got to find out who’s responsible first so we can do something about it,” she stated logically as Remington nodded in agreement, trying to keep his rising fear and anger under control.

                                           


	2. Chapter 2

Once they’d spent some time with their older brother Laura announced to Olivia and Mickey that it was bedtime, as both her and Remington were keen to discuss the note more with Harry so they could try to get to the bottom of it. When their children protested Remington said,”Come on you two – as your mother said it’s time for bed. You can spend some more time with your brother tomorrow.” They reluctantly agreed as both Laura and Harry hugged them and gave them a kiss goodnight. “Here give me your backpack Junior and I’ll put it in your room for you,” Remington offered as he ushered his younger two children upstairs.

As he tucked them both into bed he found his mind madly trying to go over possible old foes who may have made this threat against Harry. “Daddy! Did you hear what I said?” Olivia said when he didn’t immediately respond to a question she had asked him as he tucked her into bed. Broken out of his troubled thoughts, albeit temporarily, he responded with a smile, “Sorry my darling – what did you say again?”

“I said do you think Santa Claus will bring me roller skates for Christmas if I ask for them?” Olivia repeated and as she said that, it stirred something in her father’s mind… a memory that he couldn’t quite put his finger on. “Well you never know princess,” he replied then added, “But for now it’s time for sleep eh?” as he planted a kiss on her head, all the while the word ‘rollerskates’ spinning round in his head.

And then as he got up and walked out of her bedroom it hit him. He bounded down the stairs two at a time to share his hunch with Laura…

Laura meanwhile had been talking to Harry and inspecting the note to try and glean any clues as to it’s origins. “Have you noticed anything or anyone out of the ordinary at college lately Harry?” she asked. As a thoughtful look crossed the young man’s face, his eyebrows knitted in concentration, she marvelled not for the first time, at how much even his expressions reminded her of his father.

As she asked him the question, Laura also took a closer look at the piece of paper the threatening note had been written on, and noticed something she hadn’t originally seen when Remington had first handed the note to her to read. In one corner of the page, very faintly embossed, was the outline of a flower..a lily. At that, realisation hit her and her heart filled with dread and started pounding so loud she barely registered Harry’s answer. “Now I come to think of it Laura, there’s this woman, I think she must be a grad student as she looks to be her mid twenties, who’s been coming to one of my classes lately. A few days ago as I was leaving the lecture hall she walked past me and said, ‘You so look like your father don’t you?’. She disappeared into the crowd though before I had a chance to ask her what she meant and I haven’t seen her since.”

“Laura..what’s the matter? Does that mean anything to you?” Harry asked with a mix of worry and curiosity, as he looked at the fearful look that had suddenly crossed his step-mother’s face. “Yes.. yes Harry I think it does,” Laura replied, her voice a choked whisper. Just then Remington came bounding down the stairs, the expression on his face mirroring hers as he exclaimed, “Laura! I think I might know who’s behind the note - it’s..”

“Descoine’s daughter,” Laura finished for him, her tone serious as the two of them shared a worried look, as they remembered that she had never been caught after they had apprehended her father all those years ago, and realised with dread that she had been plotting her revenge against them all this time…


	3. Chapter 3

“Who is Descoine and who is his daughter?” Harry asked as he looked at the identical fearful expresssions on his father’s and step-mother’s faces. Remington sighed as he sat down opposite Harry and said to Laura, “Do you want to explain or shall I?” Laura replied, ”I can – but feel free to jump in.”

She took a deep breath then began explaining their history with Major Percy Descoine and his daughter as Harry listened intently, his brow furrowed in consternation and his stomach twisting in knots at what these people had done to his father and step-mother. “So this psycho blamed Remington Steele for his partner committing suicide so he tried to frame you for murder and then he and his daughter tried to kill the both of you?” Harry asked worriedly once Laura had finished. “That’s pretty much it mate,” his father stated seriously as Harry blew out a breath, trying to take it all in. 

“So why would this Major Descoine’s daughter suddenly re-emerge now and not before?” he asked.

“Good question son,” Remington replied as he’d been wondering the same thing himself. “My guess is her father’s death last year may have finally pushed her over the edge.”

“Sounds plausible,” Laura agreed, her detective’s brain ticking over furiously. “Harry, that woman you told me about before - you said she looked to be in her mid twenties?” she then asked as Harry nodded. “That would be around how old Major Descoine’s daughter would be now. I’d say she was in her late teens when we encountered her wouldn’t you say Rem?”. Remington nodded in agreement. “And do you remember what she looked like Harry? Did she have dark hair?” she then asked, remembering what the teenaged ‘minor’ Descoine had looked like some years previous. Harry shook his head. “No she was blonde from memory.”

“Could have been a disguise – her father was certainly adept at using them,” Remington commented as he raised an eyebrow at Laura who nodded in agreement. “Yes indeed he was,” she stated wryly as she got up and began pacing the room, trying to put the pieces together. “But how did she find out Harry was at Harvard, studying law?” she asked aloud as her husband and step-son both looked at her, the two of them wondering the same thing.

Suddenly Harry jumped up, taking both Remington and Laura by surprise. “I think I might know. Remember that university fund raiser you came along to Dad a few months ago and a photographer took a picture of us together? I thought it only made it into the local Boston papers but maybe it went further afield and she saw it? Or maybe by some freaky coincidence she was living in Boston?”

Remington exchanged a look with Laura, impressed with his son’s reasoning. “He may have a point there,” he stated. “Yes indeed he might just be onto something,” Laura replied, as despite the serious situation, Harry couldn’t help but smile a bit at the thought of helping them solve a case. “Well one thing’s for sure – I’m not letting you out of my sight son until we get to the bottom of this and Descoine’s daughter is behind bars,” Remington announced firmly.

When Harry went to protest, Laura put a hand up to stop him. “Your father’s right Harry. Keeping you safe is our main priority here – we know firsthand what the Descoines are capable of,” she stated in a no nonsense tone that her step-son knew better than to argue with, then added as she gave Remington a meaningful look, “I think we need to take a trip to Boston.”

*****************************************


	4. Chapter 4

Remington and Laura arranged for Frances and Donald to mind Olivia and Mickey for a few days so they could fly back to Boston with Harry. They also contacted Mildred and informed her of the situation and asked her to reschedule their appointments for the next few days. “If there’s anything I can do to help boss just let me know,” she said with concern as Remington replied, “We will – thanks Mildred.“

Once their flight landed in Boston they waited in line to hail a cab to the hotel they had booked a suite in. As they were waiting for the cab Remington looked at his son, who had been rather quiet during the flight. “You okay son?” he asked with concern. Harry nodded and forced a smile onto his face. “I’m okay Dad,” he replied in an effort to convince his father as well as himself. “We’re going to get her Junior – I won’t let anything happen to you, you hear me?” Remington reassured him as he clapped him round the shoulder. “We won’t let anything happen to you Harry,” Laura added with a warm smile. Harry nodded gratefully then replied adamantly, ”I know that – I guess I’m more angry than worried now. I mean where does this woman get off threatening me?”. At that Remington let out a small chuckle, despite the seriousness of the situation and said, “Now you sound like your mother.” Harry couldn’t help but grin at that as he realised that was true.

“Speaking of which - we really should let Kate know about this Rem,” Laura stated seriously as she gave her husband a meaningful look. Remington nodded in agreement, although he knew what her reaction would be – she would be worried sick about their son and want him on the next flight home to her in London, which Remington had to admit he was also inclined to do in order to protect him. Harry had been adamant though that he wanted to come to Harvard with them in their search for clues to prove their hunch about Descoine’s daughter was correct and then to track her down. “You don’t know your way around the university like I do,” he had argued and both Remington and Laura had to concede he had a point. Still, they both had their reservations about bringing him along, although Remington did feel somewhat comforted knowing he was by his side and that he could therefore do what he needed to in order to protect him. “And we will – once we’ve had a look round Harry’s dorm room and the university and know a bit more about what we’re dealing with we’ll let Kate know,” Remington stated as he and Laura and Harry then hopped into the cab that had pulled up in front of them, the three of them silent for a while, lost in their troubled thoughts.

*******************************************

The first thing they decided to do was get in touch with campus security and the local authorities. Campus security wasn't much help though – they didn’t have any security footage of anyone breaking into Harry’s dorm room and the security officer hadn’t noticed anyone suspicious lurking around.

They then tried the police. As they sat at police headquarters talking to a detective, they were starting to get the feeling that the police weren’t taking the situation very seriously. “So you’re saying some mysterious woman who you don’t know the name of, somehow broke into your son’s dorm room, without leaving any signs of a break and enter and left him a note? So what exactly would you like me to do about that Mr Steele?” the detective asked a little impatiently as Remington looked at him incredulously.

“I want you to investigate it and track her down and arrest her that’s what I’d like you to do! My son’s been threatened and you’re doing bugger all about it!” Remington snapped, barely keeping his rising fury under control. At that the Detective shot him a dirty look and leant forward in his chair. “Listen here Mr Steele – I don’t need some hotshot Californian private eye coming in here and telling me how to do my job!” he retorted as he jabbed a finger at Remington. “Now I don’t know how you do things over on the west coast but we do things by the book here!” he added as Remington’s blue eyes blazed at him and his jaw clenched in anger.

“Detective Harris,” Laura interjected in an effort to defuse the situation, “as I’m sure you can understand, my husband is justifiably upset and concerned about the threat his son has received. We’re certainly not trying to tell you how to do your job but we do need you to take this seriously. I can assure you the Descoines are not to be taken lightly.”

The Detective blew out a breath as he calmed down a little. “Look how do you know this isn’t just some college prank or something? I mean your son’s a good looking kid,” the detective went on as he looked at Harry, “did you break some girl’s heart maybe and now she’s decided it’s time for a little payback and is just messing with you?” Harry shook his head and replied, “Not that I’m aware of.”

“This note has all the hallmarks of Minor Descoine, not some little college girl with a broken heart,” Remington stated in an exasperated tone. “Minor?” Detective Harris asked, puzzled. “Yes you know, _The Major and the Minor, Ginger Rogers, Ray Milland, Paramount, 1942_ ,” Remington rattled off automatically as the detective looked even more confused. “My husband likes to quote movie references Detective – it often helps him solve a case,” Laura explained. “We never found out Major Descoine’s daughter’s name so we just refer to her as ‘Minor’ Descoine, in reference to the movie,” she added as Detective Harris looked at them as if they were quite mad.

“Uh huh,” he replied, still not really convinced of the seriousness of the situation. “I still don’t know what you expect us to do when a note is all you’ve got to go off.”

“Well couldn’t you dust Harry’s dorm room for prints or something?” Remington suggested.

“And what’s that going to prove when we don’t even know the suspect’s real name or if she’s got any prints on record? If what you’re telling me is true it’s probably unlikely that she has any prints on record at any rate,” Detective Harris argued.

“What do you mean ‘if it’s true’? Of course it’s bloody true!” Remington exclaimed in frustration as Laura put a calming hand on his arm. “Okay I see your point about the prints,” he conceded then pointed out, “but if you found some smaller prints it would at least perhaps suggest that a woman had been in the room.”

At that Harry looked a little embarrassed and stated a little sheepishly, “Ah Dad.. I’m not sure if that would prove anything. She’s not the only woman who’s been in the room you know.” Despite the seriousness of the situation, Remington couldn’t help the lopsided grin that momentarily crossed his face as he quipped, “Chip off the old block eh son?” as Harry grinned back at him. Laura rolled her eyes at the two of them and remarked in exasperation, “Can we please focus here people!”

Both Remington and Harry apologised quickly then the three of them looked expectantly at Detective Harris. “Look Mr Steele, Mrs Steele – I get you’re worried but there’s really not much we can do without something more concrete to go on. To be quite frank, I’ve got limited resources here so unless this woman commits an actual crime we can’t be wasting our time on a hunch,” he stated adamantly as Remington glared at him.

“So that’s it then? You’re not going to help us?” he demanded as the Detective got up from the desk, his action meant to show them that this conversation was over. “Like I said Mr Steele, until an actual crime is committed our hands are tied and last time I checked leaving someone a note wasn’t a crime,” Detective Harris replied with a finality to his voice that let them know he wouldn’t take any more arguments. “Now if you folks will excuse me I’ve got some real cases to solve,” he threw at them as he nodded towards the door then walked off. “You haven’t heard the end of this Detective! I’ll be taking this up with your superior!” Remington yelled after him angrily to no avail.

“Come on Dad, it’s no use,” Harry stated dejectedly as he grabbed his father’s arm to stop him following the detective. “He’s right Rem,” Laura agreed then added, “We’re not going to get any help here so it looks like we’ll have to do this ourselves.”


	5. Chapter 5

As the three of them left the police station to head back to the hotel Laura tried to calm Remington down while Harry walked behind them, lost in his troubled thoughts. Distracted as they were, they didn’t notice the blonde woman in a car parked across the street watching them with great interest, an evil smile crossing her face, an idea forming in her head to add to her diabolical plan….

After observing them getting into a cab she pulled away from the curb and followed discreetly behind it, taking note of their hotel before heading off to an apartment block downtown. As she entered her apartment and closed the door behind her, Major Descoine’s daughter pulled off the blonde wig. “Hmm..maybe blondes do have more fun – I certainly am,” she remarked with a giggle as she set about making some tea with lemon for herself. “You’d be so proud of me Dad,” she announced, talking to her dead father as if he were there with her, as she sat down on the antique sofa and started drinking her tea. “I’m going to finish what you started and we will finally have our revenge on Mr Steele. I’m going to hit him where it hurts and do to his family what he did to mine,” she went on with a demented look in her eyes that was totally at odds with the overly sweet smile on her face.

Once she finished her tea she put the cup and saucer down then looked around the apartment until she spied what she was looking for. “Oh yes that’ll do nicely – don’t you think Dad?” she said as she went and picked up a fairly heavy statue that was sitting on the lace covered sideboard. Bracing herself, she whispered under her breath “Like you always said Dad – no pain, no gain,” then she swiftly brought the statue up and hit herself hard on the cheek with it. Trying not to wince with pain, she made her way to the bathroom to inspect her handiwork in the mirror, a large bruise and lump were fast forming where she’d hit herself.

“That should do the trick,” she stated triumphantly then she went to the phone and dialled the police. “Hello.. I’d like to report a crime. I’ve been assaulted by one of my fellow Harvard students. He was going crazy, saying I’d left him a threatening note or some such nonsense,” she stated, putting on a tearful, scared voice. “Yes I know who it was - his name is Harry O’Casey. I think he’s staying at the Hilton at the moment with his father, Remington Steele and stepmother, Laura Steele. Of course officer I can come down to the station straight away to give a statement,” she said as her demented grin got even wider, as her plan started taking shape..


	6. Chapter 6

A few hours after getting back to their hotel , Remington, Laura and Harry were sitting down trying to plan their next move in their attempt to catch Descoine’s daughter and bring her to justice, when they were interrupted by an urgent knock on the door. Wondering who it could be, Laura cautiously opened it to find two police officers standing there. “Mrs Steele?” one asked as she nodded in confirmation. ”Hello officers – thank goodness you’re here. We were starting to think you weren’t taking our concerns about Major Descoine’s daughter seriously,” she greeted them. The two officers looked at each other then one replied, “I’m sorry mam but that’s not why we’re here - can we come in please?’.

Laura looked at them puzzled as she stood aside so they could come in, then asked them, “Well why are you here then?”. Remington and Harry both looked up as the police officers entered the room. “Ah good afternoon officers can we help you?’ Remington asked as he stood up and shared a slightly concerned look with his wife. The police officers’ attention however was focused on Harry as they came up to him.  

“Are you Harry O’Casey?” one asked as Harry nodded and replied, “Yes I am. Why?”

“Can you stand up please and turn around?” the officer stated sternly as Harry and his father and step mother all looked at him with shocked concern. “What on earth is going on here?” Remington demanded as he went to go to Harry’s side but the other officer stood in front of him, blocking his way. “We are placing your son under arrest on suspicion of assault – it was reported to us an hour ago,” the officer informed him as the other one started reading Harry his rights and took his handcuffs off his belt to cuff him.

“Dad??!” Harry asked fearfully, his voice panicked as the police officer put the cuffs on him. “Now just hold on a bloody minute officer – what the hell are you talking about?? Assault?? That’s ludicrous! Who on earth said he did that?“ Remington exploded as he pushed past the officer blocking his way to go to his son’s side. “We had a report phoned in by a female Harvard student who said she’d been assaulted by one of her fellow students. She then came down to the station to make a formal statement – she had a bruise and lump on her right cheek that looked pretty nasty,” one of the officers explained as he cast a filthy look in Harry’s direction.

“Well there must be some mistake officers – Harry would never do that anything like that!” Laura protested as Remington nodded firmly in agreement. “I’m afraid she identified him by name mam,” the officer stated then added, “So we have to take him down to the station for questioning. And if you or your husband try and hinder us we’ll have no choice but to place you under arrest as well for obstruction of justice.”

“Look officer this is ridiculous! My son would never lay a hand on a woman!” Remington argued as Harry nodded and agreed, “No way.”

“Well I’m afraid it’s her word against his – I hope you’ve got a good alibi son.” the older of the two officers threw at Harry. “Well of course he’s got an alibi – he’s been here with us the whole time,” Laura stated emphatically. “Well he’s going to need more than just his father and step mother’s say so on that,” the other officer informed them.

Laura then looked at the officer and asked, “Well can you at least tell us the name of the woman he supposedly hit?” The officer got out his notebook and replied, “Spellman – Henrietta Spellman,” as identical angry and worried looks crossed Laura and Remington’s faces.

“Oh that’s very cute!” Remington muttered sarcastically as he ran a frustrated hand over his face as the police officers looked at him questioningly. “That’s Major Descoine’s daughter! When her father tried to frame me he made up the name Henry Spellman. She’s playing with us I tell you – now she’s trying to frame my son to get to me!” Remington explained, his blue eyes blazing with anger. “Well I’m sorry Mr Steele but unless you can prove that’s the case we have to treat her allegation seriously and undertake due process,” one of the officers replied as Remington shook his head.

“Due process?! So you’re just going to arrest my son who is innocent by the way and treat him like a common criminal?? She’s the criminal I tell you – her and her bloody father! Why don’t you check the records – her father was jailed and died in prison last year,” Remington threw at the police furiously. “If you just call Detective Jimmy Jarvis in the LAPD he can confirm our story,” Laura added in an effort to convince them.

“Rest assured we will do that Mrs Steele but that still doesn’t change the fact that your stepson has been accused of a serious crime – we can’t just ignore that,” one of the officers stated.

“Oh that’s just bloody great isn’t it?! She threatens my son but he’s the one who gets arrested? What sort of justice is that?” Remington retorted as one of the officers narrowed his eyes a bit and said, “She said in her statement that Mr O’Casey was saying she had threatened him before he assaulted her -are you confirming that she threatened him?”.

At that Remington stopped short, suddenly wondering if he’d said too much. When he didn’t immediately reply the officer pressed him, “Mr Steele – did she or did she not threaten him?”

“Well yes.. she left him a threatening note – that’s what we went to you lot about this morning. Well we’re pretty sure it’s Major Descoine’s daughter – all of the clues point to her. And she’s got the perfect motive - revenge,” he replied a little hurriedly.

The officer looked at Remington then said, “Well I don’t know about her motives but you’ve just given us the motive for your son assaulting her. He gets it into his head that she’s threatening him, so he confronts her, things get a bit heated – is that how it happened O’Casey?” as he looked at Harry and a stricken look crossed his father’s face as he realised he may have inadvertently implicated him. “No.. that’s not what happened at all. I didn’t hit her I swear,” Harry protested.

Remington then went to say something further but Laura grabbed him by the arm to stop him. “I think we’ve all done enough talking for the moment,” she announced with a finality to her voice that her husband knew better than to argue with, then she looked at Harry and the police officers and added firmly, “Harry won’t be saying anything further either until he has an attorney present”.

“Okay have it your way,” one of the officers replied then added, “You can follow us down to the station if you like.” Remington and Laura nodded as Remington clapped Harry on the shoulder and looking him in the eye said sincerely, “I’m so sorry son – we’re going to get you out of this I swear.” Harry nodded, his voice failing him for the moment. “We’ll be right behind the police car Harry. Don’t worry – we’ll get you an attorney and get this mess all sorted out,” Laura reassured him as well as she quickly grabbed her hand bag and she and Remington followed the officers and Harry out the door.

                                ***********************************************

Once they got to the police station Harry was taken into an interview room, while Remington and Laura waited outside the room, Remington pacing back and forth with worry. “Will you stop pacing!” Laura implored him as it was making her even more agitated than she already was. She couldn’t stop the guilt that was threatening to overwhelm her - that her actions of long ago in solving the Palmer Bank embezzlement case, before the man who had assumed Remington Steele’s identity, the man who was now her husband, had come into her life,  were now jeopardizing the well being of his son. She was also concerned about how her good friend Kate, Harry’s mother, was going to take the news her son had been arrested – she knew she was going to be sick with worry about him. But Laura knew she couldn’t let it overwhelm her - she needed to keep a straight head for both Remington and Harry’s sake, if they were going to have any chance of clearing Harry’s name and beating Descoine’s daughter once and for all.

“I’m sorry Laura – I just don’t know what else to do. This is a bloody nightmare,” Remington replied as he sunk down into the seat next to her and ran a worried hand over his face. “I know,” she agreed softly as she took one of his hands in hers, ”But we are going to prove Harry is innocent and get him out of here and then we’re going to beat Descoine’s daughter at her own game.”

“And how exactly are we going to do that?” he asked despondently. Laura gave his hand a reassuring squeeze and replied, “I’m working on it.”

Remington nodded as he put an arm around her and kissed her tenderly. “Thankyou,” he murmured softly, hoping she was right.

Just then a blonde woman appeared at the door of the room they were sitting in. They didn’t recognise her at first but as she soon as she spoke they did. “Well Mr Steele, Miss Holt – how delightful to see you again. Oh my apologies - it’s Mrs Steele now isn’t it? Congratulations on your marriage – I’m sure my wedding invitation must have got lost in the mail,” Descoine’s daughter said in her sugary sweet voice as Laura put a restraining hand on Remington’s arm as he looked like he was going to jump up and throttle her. Enjoying toying with them, just like her father had done in the past, she continued with a demented giggle, “Fancy seeing you here – now isn’t that a coincidence? Oh I do hope I didn’t get your son into too much trouble Mr Steele.”

With that Remington couldn’t control himself any longer. “Why you psychotic little  b…!” he went to say as he broke free of Laura’s restraining hand and jumped up, advancing towards Descoine’s daughter, but she cut him off,  although she also backed away a bit when she saw the furious look in his eyes. “Come now Mr Steele there’s no need for name calling. Now you can see what it feels like – watching your son rot in jail like I had to watch my father,” she threw at him, her voice turning vicious, her true colours coming to the fore. Remington advanced threateningly towards her, his blue eyes blazing cold fury. “Your father deserved to rot in jail – just like your’e going to do. My son on the other hand is innocent,” he spat at her between clenched teeth as Laura came and stood by his side.

“Leave Harry out of this – it’s us you want revenge on, not him,” Laura tried to reason with her but Descoine’s daughter just smiled a diabolical smile at them. “Oh but that’s the beauty of my plan Mrs Steele - hit you where it will hurt the most.  I’m going to take your family away from you, just like you did to me,” she stated coldly as Laura and Remington both glared at her.

“Go on Mr Steele – you know you want to hit me,” she taunted him. Laura could see his hand curling into a fist so she told him firmly, “Don’t Rem – that’s exactly what she wants you to do. You can’t help Harry if you’re in jail too.” A muscle twitched in his cheek as Remington fought the urge to hit Descoine’s daughter, realising Laura was right. He relaxed his hand just as a police officer walked past and looked at the three of them standing there. “Everything okay here folks?” he asked curiously as they all forced smiles onto their faces. “Yes everything’s fine thankyou officer,” Laura replied hurriedly as Remington nodded in agreement. “Oh yes officer – just fine and dandy,” Descoine’s daughter added in her sickly sweet voice then turning to the Steeles said, “As much as I’d love to continue our chat, I really must go – so much to do. Until we meet again,” she echoed her father as she gave them both a promising, yet threatening look which didn’t match her fake smile as she followed the police officer down the hall and out of the station….


End file.
